Tidal actions of the oceans, seas, rivers and lakes may be used as a source of energy (i.e., electrical power generation). However, systems using tides as a source of energy are massive systems that, if implemented, may create impediments to water surface travel. Additionally, these systems may be problematic due to destruction of marine life through entanglement or entrapment of marine fauna and flora and therefore may not be conducive to safe environmental power generation. These systems may also incur high maintenance costs and high installation cost.
Some systems may be merely turbines provided in an open environment. Systems may have very long walls that require ground anchoring in the sea floor. Systems may also have floatation systems containing small turbines while encompassing massive areas making the area where they are installed no longer usable for anything else. Additionally, many systems may not take into account the extreme tidal conditions and in many cases can only be installed in major tidal areas that have large differentials between the high tide and the low tide. Additionally, tidal generators may have a lead and lag power supply time between the time they reach a peak of the high tide and a peak of the ebb tide. During these periods of time, these tidal generators may not generate any power. Additionally, due to the large structures required for these systems, the overall cost of power installation may be $2 million to $2.5 million per installed Megawatt, for example.